This year the event is guided by the idea of "juure juures", which grew out of conversations between a granddaughter and her grandmother.

On Friday, President Alar Karis launched the initiative "Vanavanema hääl" at the Folklore Awards at the Estonian Literary Museum.

The organizers request conversations with grandparents to be recorded on a phone in a noise-free environment and submitted online using the participation form at kratt.folklore.ee/vanavanem.

The content of the conversation is up to each family to decide for themselves. The audio clips presented during March may also be played at the Tartu Dance Celebration on 16 June. The submitter will be contacted beforehand.

Kristel Maruste, artistic director of the dance celebration, said: "It is extremely important that different generations come together and talk to each other. The purpose of our call is to bring greater togetherness and more heart-to-heart conversations to Estonian families. Maintaining close relationships is one of the arts of survival for us to persevere."

The recordings will be stored in the Estonian Folklore Archive of the Estonian Literary Museum, where future generations can listen to them.

"We hope that the idea of being able to still hear the voice of our ancestors in fifty and one hundred years, and preserve family heritage, will inspire Estonians to join in the call and record their stories," Maruste added.

The initiative is led by the Tartu 2024 Song and Dance Celebration, the European Capital of Culture Tartu 2024, and the Estonian Folklore Archive of the Estonian Literary Museum.

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